A baby born with brain damage at a hospital in Oahu, Hawaii, was infected by the Zika virus, USA health officials confirmed on Saturday, apparently the first case of the mosquito-borne virus in a birth on US soil.
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This alert follows reports in Brazil of microcephaly and other poor pregnancy outcomes in babies of mothers who were infected with Zika virus while pregnant.
Canada last week issued a health advisory urging travelers to guard against mosquito bites when visiting the countries of Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela.
When Zika does produce symptoms, they’re usually mild and can include fever, rash, headaches, joint pain, muscle pain, lack of energy, weakness and pink eye.
“We are in the process of developing a travel warning not only for pregnant women, but for everybody”, said Dr. Lyle Petersen, who heads the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s division on diseases carried by mosquitoes and other insects and animals.
Hawaii state epidemiologist Dr. Sarah Park said in a statement, “We are saddened by the events that have affected this mother and her newborn”.
Petersen said USA experience to date with similar mosquito-borne diseases like dengue and chikungunya suggests that facets of the North American lifestyle – living in air-conditioned homes and dwellings with screens on windows and doors – should limit how much the virus would spread here.
Dr Petersen warned that the link is not yet definite and said that a team of CDC investigators is travelling to Brazil in a few weeks to conduct more studies and learn what risks face pregnant women. Symptoms set in three to 12 days after a person is bitten by an infectious mosquito.
There is no vaccine or treatment for the Zika virus infection, which is spread by Aedes mosquitoes. Women trying to become pregnant who are thinking about becoming pregnant should consult with their healthcare provider before traveling to these areas. The first locally-transmitted case in Puerto Rico was identified in December. “That’s pretty good evidence that, at least in those children with microcephaly, there was Zika virus in their brains”.
The Zika virus is spread by the Aedes mosquito – the same one that carries other diseases that infect humans, including yellow fever, West Nile, chikungunya and dengue. There is no medicine or vaccine for it. Hospitalizations are rare, and deaths from Zika have not been reported.
Countries that have past or current evidence of Zika virus transmission, as of January 2016.
“There’s no indication at this point that there’s any Zika virus circulating in Hawaii”, CDC spokesman Tom Skinner told Reuters.
CDC scientists tested samples provided by Brazilian health authorities from two pregnancies that ended in miscarriage and from two infants with diagnosed microcephaly who died shortly after birth.
The most common symptoms of Zika virus disease are …
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The most populated southeastern region reported the highest number of cases, 1.02 million, or 62 percent of the total cases.
